Where were you?
by Rowana1
Summary: tag to Ducking and Diving; begins at Wills' fake banishment, then picks up when he's back at camp. There's a few members of the camp in need of a talk with a certain someone, a tale that needs to be told, and something that really needs to be given back.
1. Chapter 1

**This is for Legolas Thranduilion! And yeah; this is only the first of a few short chapters unleasing punishment against the injustice that is the ending of the book Homeland by R.A. Salvatore. (I loved it. But the ending licked. Time for ANGST) **

~You have until Sunset~

"Can I trust you, Will?" the words startled the carpenter as he placed another rock onto the small pile he'd collected; the better to bury Henry with, under not just dirt, but stone as well. He flashed his leader a confused look for a moment, the answer to the question springing readily to mind, but much slower in reaching his lips. He cast a wary look behind him, as if he suspected that being overheard would bring some sort of dire consequence, before speaking.

"Of _course_," he said, as if it should be fairly obvious. He was still bristling from the earlier events of the day. Everyone in the group seemed to think that he was the traitor, and he had no idea what he'd done to bring such suspision upon himself. Things might be about to look up, though. If Robin didn't believe he was the betrayer, the others could hardly openly disagree unless they thought they had proof to back up their claims.

He approached slowly, sensing from the way Robin was looking at him that silence was in order.

He couldn't read the exact expression on the older outlaws' face, but it appeared to be a slightly guilty look, he thought as Robin stood up from his previously kneeling position.

"I need your help." Robin said earnestly, his voice low and eyes wide. He was looking at Will with an odd sort of look, the sort of look children give their parents when issuing a sincere apology.

Putting his confusion to the back of his mind in light of all that had happened recently, Will cast another look back before replying. "Anything." he answered quickly, looking to Robin for direction.

Robin came a little closer, keeping his voice soft and tone even softer. "Marian saw a serving maid speaking to Gisborne, at the Trip. She'll know who our spy is,"

Will raised an eyebrow at that, but stayed silent as Robin went on.

The outlaw leader gave him a searching look. "And I can go to the trip, find the serving maid, and make her tell me who the traitor is."

There was a momentary pause, and Will could feel a slight tingle of excitement, waiting for Robin to give him a task. At this point he'd do anything to convince Robin, of all people, that he was innocent. But he wished that Robin would hurry up and tell him what he needed to do; the quicker he could get it done, the quicker they could be done with all of this!

Robin seemed to sigh before his next sentence. "You'll go back to the camp at sundown."

Will gave a light, nervous laugh at that. What was Robin talking about? "Where am I going?" he asked, eager to be on his way, wherever it was.

Robin gave a long exhale, looking at the ground for several moments before looking at Will again. His voice was all apologetic this time, and his words weren't at all what Will had expected to hear. Giving a slight shake of his head, Robin advanced another step. "This is gonna hurt," he muttered sadly.

Even more confused, the carpenter looked both directions, as if trying to see what Robin was talking about. Before he could ask, however, a heavy right hook slammed into the side of his face, spinning him about and making him stumble several paces. Finally regaining composure, although his head was spinning from the force of the blow, Will straightened, looking a question at Robin with one hand pressed to his mouth; he was pretty sure that the punch had split a lip, and it certainly felt like it had.

He was about to ask Robin what he was doing, but Robins' hand on his arm kept him quiet. There was nothing he could do but watch, eyes beginning to show less nervousness and more actual fear, as Robin pulled his hand away and punched him again, this time harder than the last.

The third blow sent him sprawling onto the ground, landing painfully on his front and banging his head against the forest floor, he stayed down, unsure of Robins' intentions, but was flipped onto his back by a calm, almost emotionless Robin. He flinched away from the touch, vaguely hearing voices, as Robin pinned him down with one hand and gripped the tag around his neck with the other.

He looked a question at his leader, _why, _but his only response was,

"Sundown. Remember." as Robin jerked the tag off of him, walking away without another word.

Will stayed where he was, but scrambled to his feet a moment later. His first instinct was to go after Robin, as him what on Earth he was playing at, but better sense told him to get away from there as fast as he could, tripping and stumbling in his rush. He could hear the voices of the others behind him, but quickly realized that no one was giving any sort of chase.

That didn't stop him from running.

It was that fact alone that kept him fleeing into the forest with as much speed as he could manage.

* * *

**What's gonna happen NEXT? This is going to be canon; with only one little tiny twist thrown in by meself. It's also going to be the first story I've ever finished in one night.**


	2. Chapter 2

**LET THE ANGSTY ANGST BEGIN!**

~Had to Suspect Someone~

The ambush had been successful, but that didn't make the trip back to camp any less awkward. After a day like they'd had, hardly anything would be able to take the edge off of the tension that had descended upon them.

Will Scarlet kept to the back of the line of outlaws, his gaze rivetted on the ground and casting wary looks at those around him. He hadn't forgotten his earlier banishment, even if it had only been a ruse to draw out the real traitor. What stung even worse than the blows he'd taken from Robin, however, was the fact that the entire group had so readily accepted the accusation of him being a traitor.

He'd thought they knew him better than that, but from the beginning, Much had thought for certain it had been him, and was now denying it as if he'd known all along that it was Allan A Dale. And that was another thing; Allan had practically been Wills' brother, and now he was gone. Truth be told, he'd been the only one to really fall under Wills' own suspision, but that didn't make it any easier.

He wondered what the others were thinking.

They probably still had their suspisions about him, he thought, probably still worried whether he had betrayed them or not. They probably thought he was no better than Allan himself, that Robin had made a mistake in allowing him to come with them after what had happened.

He felt someone looking at him and lifted his eyes to meet the searching gaze of Much, which was quickly averted the second Robins' right-hand noticed that Will knew he was looking. He doubted Much trusted him, more than he thought that of the others. Much had been so sure that Will had betrayed them, and had suggested it at every chance he'd gotten. It really left little to be pondered over why the others had believed it, once they saw Robin openly accusing Will for himself.

But the question remained, why had they done it?

Sighing quietly and looking down once more, he considered the day.

He supposed he should count himself as lucky John hadn't been there when Robin had started on him; he'd seen Johns' reaction to Roy back when the man had tried to kill Robin. He had, of course, calmed considerably after learning that Roy had had a good reason for such a thing. but somehow Will didn't think he would have been allowed the same chance that the deceased outlaw had had been.

They entered the camp wordlessly, going in seperate directions and, for the most part, trying not to look at each other. They had all suspected one another, after all, how could they just go back to acting as if they'd never thought as much, even if they'd been proved wrong?

It didn't change the fact that they'd all had their guesses as to who it was selling their secrets.

Will wasn't sure what he should do, whether he should make sure Djaq was alright or just stay in the farthest corner of the camp he possibly could and set about some sort of made-up chore. He knew Djaq wouldn't be at all pleased about the revelation of Allans' treachery, but still. It didn't feel right to approach her just yet. Odds were she'd thought Will a traitor in place of Allan anyway. The thought burned in his mind, and he tried in vain to push it away.

Djaq, of everyone in the camp, knew him better than that.

For perhaps the millionth time that day, he sighed to himself. He supposed that for now, being alone would be his best option. Not in the camp either, but elsewhere. Maybe a short trip to one of the villages would clear his mind. That thought feeling just as much like a shackle or noose as all others had, he turned and left the camp once more.

Again, he couldn't help but notice, no one tried to stop him.

* * *

**Wuahahhahaa, next chapter will have Djaq!ANGST and Will!Angst and Guilty!Robin. Are you excited? **


	3. Chapter 3

**MOAR ANGST! *Cheers and huggles Will***

~That thought in Mind~

He probably didn't think anyone had noticed him leaving, Djaq thought. She watched the carpenter in his sullen gait, eyes downcast as he exited the camp, destination unknown. She knew that he must feel strange, having been banished and then so suddenly readmitted into the group as if nothing odd had taken place.

She did wonder where he was going, what he was doing, if he intended to return.

Djaq felt her eyes widen momentarily, and she mentally shook herself. No, she mustn't think like that. Will wouldn't just leave because of one event, would he? But then, he hadn't looked quite right since he'd first come out of the bushes at Robins' call, which had led her to wonder if he'd been following them through the entire span of his banishment. Maybe he was more troubled than he let on about it, but surely not troubled enough to leave.

And one could hardly blame him for being upset; he had been subjected to not only total rejection, if only for a little while, but also humiliation and, from what Djaq had seen, a beating from Robin. It was far from surprising that he didn't want to be seen at the moment. But what would be surprising would be if he followed the Saracens' first thought and didn't come back at all. She didn't know what she'd do if that were the case, and tried to put it out of her mind by thinking of other things.

Such as her dwindling supply of medicine.

She'd have to go and find more herbs soon, as well as various other plants that she could turn into remedies and cures. She frowned down at the box she kept her supplies in and shifted uncomfortably, placing it back onto her bed at a thought that popped into her head. Robin had hit Will at least twice, that she'd seen, maybe more. Will could be hurt.

And she hadn't tended his wounds.

Practically the worst realization a physician could experience, the knowledge that they'd failed to help someone in pain. She didn't care if Robin hadn't been hitting Will as hard as it had looked like he had. He had, after all, been hitting Will in the _head_. Head wounds were serious. A dizzying aray of possibilities welled up before her eyes.

Will might have a concussion, or worse, and she hadn't noticed it! Allah only knew what could happen to someone wandering around on their own with a concussion, unable to think straight or, as an extension, protect themself. Or he could have been hurt when he'd fallen that last time Robin hit him, could have cracked a rib or something of the like.

And she hadn't noticed.

Mentally kicking herself, Djaq stood up and looked around the campsite from the little room Will had set up for her. It could be seperated from the other sleeping places with a screen, a feature he'd added to this part of the camp because of Djaq being a girl, although she'd protested vehemently about it, saying that if she wanted privacy at any point she'd go away, but Will had insisted.

She bit back a smile and continued to scan the campsite, at last finding the outlaw she was looking for: Robin.

He sat to one side of the camp, head down and clearly deep in thought. Not that it really mattered, he was soon to be interrupted.

* * *

Robin looked up as Djaq approached, noting instantly the slightly worried- or angry- grimace that graced her features. He wasn't sure what could be wrong, but had a pretty good idea. It probably had something to do with the fact that Allan was gone, he thought; she'd liked Allan quite a bit, might be upset that he was gone. Ah well, she wasn't the sort to mope over things. She probably just needed someone to talk to, as girls, he'd noticed, tended to do.

He mentally prepared himself to give the speech he'd been rehearsing ever since banishing Allan; it had to be done, treachery wasn't acceptable, he'd been lucky Robin hadn't killed him, that sort of thing. He knew already that Djaq understood, that Djaq wouldn't argue about it. She wasn't one to not say what she thought, though, Robin knew that much for certain.

However, he wasn't prepared for the first words the Saracen said as she came closer.

"Will's gone." she said, almost accusingly.

Robin nearly fell over. "Gone?" he repeated, "Gone where?"

Djaq shrugged, still looking something close to furious. "I don't know, just...gone...he left almost as soon as we got back."

Now that was a surprise, but not terribly concerning either. "He probably just went to-"

Djaq was already shaking her head, looking at him in disbelief. "Robin. You need to go after him."

Robin blinked. "He won't stay away for very long, he'll be back in a few hours at the most."

The saracen couldn't contain a disbelieving snort, causing Robin to give her an annoyed look.

"What?" he exclaimed, "You know he wouldn't just leave!" he narrowed his eyes, as if challenging her to disagree. After all, they did both know that the young Scarlet couldn't possibly just leave, regardless of whether there was no fact besides the boys' own personality to back up the claim. It wouldn't be like him to just up and leave, he would have said something first, surely.

Djaq glared back at him, now fully angry. "You should go after him," she replied in an even, overly measured tone, "To apologize."

Now Robin was truly surprised. "Apologize?" he asked, clearly stunned.

Djaq rolled her eyes and nodded. "Yes, apologize." she said as if it should have been obvious, "You _did _hit him."

The leader of the outlaws was sure he'd never been quite so taken aback by a single sentence in his entire life. "But he knew I was going to hit him," he defended, "I warned him first."

The healer raised an eyebrow. "You told him your entire real plan before punching him?" her tone suggested that she didn't believe it in the slightest. Which, of course, she didn't.

Robin scowled. "Not the whole plan...I only said I needed his help..." he glowered accusingly at Djaq, "But it had to look real, and it did."

Ah, but Djaq was quick to argue. "Is there any reason why your plan had to include hurting Will? What did that get us?"

Robin felt his mouth open and close several times, with no sound coming out. His scowl deepened and he shook his head in irritation.

"So there wasn't any purpose behind treating him no differently than you would a real traitor?"

Robin sighed heavily; this was getting old very quickly. "For all I knew, it could have been him."

The next thing he knew, his world was spinning and a ringing filled his ears, a burning sensation covering the left side of his face as some unseen force, too quick to track with eyes alone, struck him so hard it turned his head to one side, a furious voice barely reaching him.

"What gives you the right to ask for his help if you don't even trust him?"

Robin, rubbing his face gingerly, winced back at her. "I don't know-" he started to say, a growl touching his voice.

Djaq sighed and looked at him with a slightly softer expression. "Just...make it right."

* * *

**WUAHAHAHAA. Next up, Moar Robin Vs. Djaq (for want of more angst) as well as very light Robin Vs. Will, moar Will!Angst, some extremely Dark!Will, and WTH Will was doing while he was away! But first, a little side shot involving Will and Allan, methinks. *Thought just came to mind* Yessssssss...also, this is off-topic;**

**WTH can mean WANT TO HELP, or WILL THE HERO, or WILL: TOTALLY HO-**

**Muses: ENOUGH! *Drag me away back to the CAVE* **


	4. Chapter 4

~Alone~

Will entered the village as a shadow, making sure no one would know he was there and keeping as low of a profile as he could. He didn't have anything with him to give anyone, and didn't want to see the disappointed looks on the villagers' faces when they realized as much if they saw him.

Besides, he wanted to be alone anyway.

He didn't really even know why he'd come here; there was hardly any place better suited to the creation of lonliness than the very place he'd just come from. He wasn't sure exactly which village this was, either, only that it was a different place from where he'd been. He could think here. Maybe, just maybe, if he stayed here long enough he'd be able to sort out what exactly had just happened.

There wasn't much for it but silent, aimless wandering that took him in circuits in and around the village, going unnoticed so completely that he almost thought he really was a ghost, and he certainly felt like one. The fact that no one saw him, he knew, wasn't to have quite so much credit placed on his skills at silent moving as to the fact that darkness was swiftly falling. How long had it been since Robin had told him to come back at sunset? How long had it been since sunset?

Long enough that there was plenty of darkness hanging about to match and mask the melancholy that had, it seemed, descended all around him.

Will didn't want to feel sorry for himself, but he could feel his resolve weakening as he stood still for a moment, taking a deep breath and looking around the little village with a feeling of longing.

He and his family had lived in a house that could perfectly match any one of these. In fact, he was fairly sure that Dan himself had built the one they'd lived in. And now he wasn't sure that anything like that would ever happen again.

He resumed walking at a much slower pace than before, keeping his eyes rivetted only on the ground directly in front of him. So it was that he almost walked directly into a tree, staring at it for several seconds as if he wasn't sure if it was really there or simply a figment of his own imagination, before sinking against it with a feeling of foreboding.

Allan. Will couldn't believe Allan had betrayed them, even if Allan had been the obvious choice from the very beginning of this whole ordeal. That didn't make it any easier. He'd known it couldn't be Djaq, because Djaq was Djaq. She'd never do something like that. And Much was too obnoxious about this sort of thing to have anything to do with it. It could never have been Little John. Mostly because of the throttling that John had given Roy over the same thing. Will had highly doubted John would turn traitor himself after that event.

Really, Allan was the only one who could have betrayed them, and he'd proven the suspicion right. But that hadn't stopped them all from readily blaming Will.

They'd thought that he would betray them.

Will groaned quietly and buried his face against his knees, closing his eyes tightly against the memories flashing through his mind. What in the world had he done to make them think he was the one who could sell their secrets to Guy? And why had Much been so determined to fuel the accusation? What had Will ever done to Much, that would make Much hate him enough to really think it was him?

Maybe he shouldn't have joined in the friendly ribbing that had gone with Much becoming the Earl of Bonchurch for a little while? He hadn't known that such an act could cause feelings of loathing in Robins' right hand man, but he knew he'd never do it again, if that was the case.

John hadn't seemed to have any thoughts on who'd betrayed them, more focussed on not doing anything incriminating himself and keeping everyone else from killing each other.

Djaq hadn't really acted any differently from her normal self either. Surely she'd known, hadn't she, that Will would never do anything to harm the gang?

That was why Robin had chosen Will to be part of his plan. Not because Will had been the only one around at the moment the plan had popped into his head, but because he'd planned it that way. He'd known that everyone considered Will to be a traitor, and he'd used it to his advantage. Will knew it was a clever ploy, but he would have liked to know why. Would have liked to have been given a better warning that he was about to be beaten, even if only three times, and then banished. Would have liked to know Robin didn't mean it.

But Robin had to have been calling on something in order to hit him that hard.

And Allan wasn't much better; it looked like he'd been perfectly happy to let Will take the majority of the blame for his actions. He'd even suggested it a time or two, right after Robin first revealed there was a traitor in their midst. He'd been like a brother, an older brother. He'd been the best friend Will had never had before, and now he was gone, like Dan, and Will couldn't help but feel like it was his fault.

Allan had been acting strange for a while now, arguing more with Robin and disappearing often. Will should have noticed, should have said something.

Should have stopped the betrayal before it had happened.

And now it was too late and Will felt very alone indeed.

* * *

**Okay...that went wide...SO, everything that I'd said last chapter would be in this chapter, will be in THE NEXT CHAPTER! It's after midnight and I gotta go to bed now soooo...yeah...a little more wait before ACTION!**


	5. Chapter 5

**Dun dun dun duuun...it's tiiiiime...O_O Also, you have no idea how hard it is to write this while listening to Toby Macs' Ignition...-_-**

~We need to Talk~

Robin couldn't help but notice, with a twinge of irritation, that no one appeared to have anything to say on the matter of Djaq slapping him. He would have greatly appreciated at least a small rise out of Much about it, but no. What had he done to get them all cross with him, then? His plan had worked, even if it had been a slightly problematic sort of plan.

Bah. He supposed it must be his fate to be an eternal martyr to the whims of the others of the gang. He didn't quite grasp Djaqs' final statement, the one she made when looking at him as if she'd never unleased hells' fury upon the side of his face with but one touch. It was that sort of slap that made him wonder why she thought she needed a sword; if she practiced slapping the fire out of their enemies then they'd probably never have to fight again, as anyone so much as thinking of starting a conflict would run away, screaming, at the very sight of Djaq preparing to slap them.

But the time for such thoughts wasn't at this present time, he reminded himself, crawling out of his momentary shock and making eye-contact once more. "Make it right?" he repeated, an edge of confusion evident with every word.

Djaq scowled briefly and gestured away from the camp. "Find him," she said simply, "Tell him you're sorry." she paused, waiting for a response.

Robin frowned and looked away, mumbling under his breath. "I already apologized..." he half-growled, "Will understands that it worked..."

The saracen was starting to look about ready to slap him again. "Robin," she said seriously, "Would he have left if he wasn't upset?"

The leader of the outlaws resigned to his trip out of the camp, if only to appease Djaq, but made sure she was aware that he didn't find any of it necessary. "Alright," he sighed, hesitating for a moment before adding, "You sound like Marian..." in a hushed tone.

Djaq quirked an eyebrow. "No," she said in a matter-of-fact tone, "Marian would have slapped you twice."

That thought in mind, Robin headed out of the camp, suddenly very glad indeed that Djaq didn't sound as like Marian as she could. He knew Marian would agree with the healer, and that alone annoyed him to no end. He realized that his plan hadn't been the best one, but honestly, how many reminders did he need? And Djaqs' persistance that he'd especially wronged the young carpenter only served to make it worse. But it would be fine, he knew; Will couldn't possibly be _that _upset.

* * *

Will didn't know how much time had passed, or that he'd fallen asleep at some point during his little vigil; only that when he awoke it was to fading visions of flashing blue eyes and flying fists that made stars explode before his eyes, retreating voices screaming at him to leave and never come back. _Traitor_, _Traitor_, they screamed, _traitor_, making him want, for a moment, to scream back at them and make them go away, or at least drown them out with his own voice.

He could feel a pain lancing up and down his spine from the position he'd been in, presumably for a long time, and sighed in relief as he realized that he'd just awoken from a dream, not some horrible twist of reality. He also realized, a moment later, that he couldn't see anything and his face was rather sore from being pressed against his knees for such a long period of time, and he slowly uncurled, looking around almost curiously.

The sky was fully dark, with stars and moon glittering in vivid contrast to the greyer shades lacing the edges of his mind. He blinked, hoping to brush away the last twinges of hurt and discomfort brought about from knowing his supposed friends thought he would so easily betray them, as well as the fact that someone who had been practically a brother _had _betrayed them, but found no such luck.

Will attempted to rise, only to find that it was much easier to simply lean back fully against the tree instead of actually getting up and going back to camp. He'd been gone for too long; the others would be cross with him when he returned, if they'd noticed he'd even left to begin with, and he wasn't quite ready to face their eyes on him. However, if he didn't go back to camp now, he knew it would only make it harder later on. Delaying what had to be done would just make the return even more awkward.

And yet, he couldn't move.

Taking a deep breath, he closed his eyes again, whispering a quiet plea to his father to somehow give him direction. None came, of course, but the act of speaking to his father, even though Dan wasn't there, brought its own sort of comfort. Almost like the previous carress of his cheek from Djaq, who seemed to know he was still sore from Robins' none too gentle applications of his own hands, he wished to prolong the brief contact, no matter how impossible the longing was to actually achieve.

He had no time to dwell on it, however, as the sound of nearby footsteps had both eyes snapping open in an instant, hand closing the little axe at his belt and preparing to defend himself, in case an attack was coming. He was also ready to spring out of view in case it was a villager, not wanting to scare some poor maiden by adapting a fighting stance at her, or engage a farmer in combat by appearing too ready for conflict.

But none of his worries were confirmed, it was only Robin.

Will dropped his gaze instantly, letting go of the axe and finding a sudden interest in his leaders' boots. This was simply wonderful, wasn't it? Robin really didn't trust him, and had probably come looking to make sure Will wasn't off trying to replace Allan as the inside spy, or something else of suspecting nature. Will wouldn't be surprised if Robin had come to re-banish him. He knew it was an absurdly cynical idea, but still. With all that had happened today...

Robin blinked down at him, a confused expression coming over him. "Will?" when Will didn't reply, Robin took a step closer. "Will." he repeated.

Will slowly looked up at him, wincing inwardly. Robins' tone suggested something only a little below anger on the spectrum of emotions. He was probably in trouble. Again. Even if it hadn't been real the first time. "Robin..."

Robin frowned and came closer, dropping to the ground beside him and frowning even more when he noticed the small flinch that shook the carpenter as he realized the close proximety. "We need to talk."

Will, staring straight ahead instead of actually looking at Robin, tried to find some reason to have to go back to camp right away, but found none. He also couldn't think of anything to say, too worried was he about why Robin had come looking for him and what he'd done this time, if it was going to involve being knocked about again, and things of similer nature.

The older outlaw sighed. So Will was upset. This much was clear from his stony silence, the refusal to actually make eye contact. Brilliant. He made a mental note not to look at Djaq when they returned to camp. "About earlier-"

The carpenter cast him a wary sideways glance. "Is there another traitor?" he asked quietly, "Do we have to do it again?"

Robin gave a lightly amused snort of laughter. "No," he chuckled, noting that Will didn't seem to find it the least bit funny, "Of course not." he sighed, seriousness taking over again, "I wanted to apologize."

Will frowned slightly. "You already did..." he mumbled, "It's fine...It _did _work..."

Robin added a mental check to his score against Djaq; she'd been right that Will was upset, but he had her on that Will did understand why. He knew he shouldn't be keeping track of wins virsus losses at the moment, but couldn't quite contain the reaction. "That wasn't a proper apology," he admitted, "and it's not fine."

Will blinked, but said nothing.

Robin sighed. This was harder than he'd thought it would be. "If it's fine, then why'd you slink off by yourself to lick your wounds, eh? You had time enough for that earlier, so if it was _fine _you'd have-"

Will gave him a reproachful stare, eyes widening by a fraction and an even more injured, if lightly defensive, expression coming over him. "I didn't have any time earlier!" he yelped, "Didn't even know what had happened until an hour later..." his voice shook ever so slightly as his words trailed off, betraying the undercurrent of emotion that was so carefully burried beneath the surface.

"What do you mean you didn't have any time? You were by yourself for at least...was it three or four hours?"

Will looked away again. "I don't know...sorry..." he was sure he wasn't helping his situation by getting angry with Robin; why wouldn't Robin assume he'd been doing something faintly enjoyable during his time away from the rest of the gang? If he could be a traitor, he could certainly meet other low expectations, couldn't he?

Robin tilted his head to one side, scowl deepening. "What's wrong?" he asked, wondering exactly what about his actions had bothered Will so much that he could hardly even speak without his voice wavering on the edge of a full-on breakdown. "What's _really _wrong?"

Will seemed to fight with whether or not to say anything for a moment, looking around as if for something to use as an excuse to escape the conversation and finally looking down, eyes closed. "I...it was just...scary...right?" he seemed unsure of his answer, even startled by the fact that he'd said anything at all.

Robin raised an eyebrow. "Scary?"

The carpenter nodded slowly, still avoiding eye contact like the grave. When Robin continued to stare at him him in bewilderment, he became somewhat defensive yet again. "Well...you banished me," he said, as if it ought to be obvious, "everyone thought that-"

Robin smirked and shook his head. "But you knew you weren't the traitor; it's not like you had to worry about being caught. And besides that, you knew you'd be able to come back the moment I found out who it really was."

Will shuddered and closed his eyes. "Yeah but...it was real...for that little bit of time...Couldn't go anywhere near the others...because they thought..." he winced and looked at Robin searchingly, expecting some sort of confirmation on his fear.

But the elder outlaw didn't quite understand. "It was only a few hours; you and Djaq go off for longer than that..."

There was a small tremble in Wills' voice as he spoke again. "But...even then, that's with _some_one, not alone...not where I _can't _talk to anyone...not like it was today." now actually looking at Robin, voice quavering even more, Will gave a slightly nervous laugh, "And what was I gonna tell Luke?"

Robin felt both eyebrows go up. "Luke?"

Will nodded. "If...if you forgot I was supposed to come back...couldn't go to Scarborough and find Luke; he'd want to know why I'm not with you anymore...can't tell him I was banished for bein' a traitor, oh don't worry; it wasn't real, they just forgot it wasn't..." he fell silent for a moment, "I knew you wouldn't forget...but...what _would _I tell Luke?"

Robin had to admit that he hardly understood even a bit of that particular rant, but decided to let Will continue.

The carpenter lowered his gaze, voice dropping with his eyes. "You might've still forgot...didn't know if I could come back, even after..."

Robin frowned. "Why not? What would make you think that?"

Will let out another, equally as nervous laugh. "It's too small a thing but...well I was worried, for a minute...since it's a...an important small thing...shouldn't have though...but, you...you still have my tag..." his voice cracked so badly on the last word that Robin could swear he was about to dissolve into tears at any second. Indeed, both eyes did seem to have taken on a watery appearance.

Damn. He knew he'd forgotten something. The tags went to everyone who was a member of the group, and he'd taken Wills' away to signify that he was no longer one of them. Not giving it back suggested that he still wasn't part of their little gang. Even worse, Robin realized, he'd given no second thought to tossing the tag into the bushes after sending Will away, just like he'd done with Allans'. "You can make a new one...?" Robin suggested.

Will stared at him blankly. "Make a new one?"

It was Robins' turn to look away, wincing and shaking his head a bit. "Ah...I...I threw yours away...wasn't thinking about it...sorry..."

Will tried not to start really crying, but his vision was starting to be obscurred by unshed tears and, not wanting to get overly upset in front of Robin, stood up, looking for a piece of wood to start fashioning into a new tag. Odds were he'd look for his own later, and Allans', but it wouldn't do for Robin to know that. "It's fine..." he said again, in a slightly defeated voice, "It's fine..."

Robin let the silence linger for a few moments, watching the carpenter pick up a fallen branch from beneath the tree, chop a bit off of it with the axe, and sink back down to begin whittling. He couldn't help but notice that Will seemed to be scraping at the bark particularly hard with one of those little knives he kept with him.

He could, however, only bear the sound of silence and scraping for so long. He cast Will a wary glance, not entirely sure he wanted this question answered, but it was one that had only just popped into his mind. It would probably do them both good. "Will," he said slowly, "Earlier today, after you were banished...you were gone for a long time..." he paused, working up his nerve, before finishing, "Where exactly were you?"

* * *

**I know, I know, the talk bites, Will's a bit too emo, but you'll know why in the next chapter. His reactions will be totally justified by the time you find out what exactly he went through while he was by himself. ^;^ We draw nearer to the end...but what sort of end will it be, eh? Fluffy...or terribly angsty?**

**Which do you prefer, and which do you think is most likely? *Dun dun dun dun* **


End file.
